Page 17 of Scoring with my Bestie's Ex

My hands clench so tightly around my lemonade that I worry about breaking the cup.

There’s no point in trying to stop him.

I honestly can’t even blame him for being so angry.

I could have gone through with the wedding. It wasn’t as though I needed to sign the certificate right away.

Why couldn’t I have pretended like everything was fine until I was able to talk to him later?

I did embarrass him in front of all our friends and family…

Wait, what am I doing?

I release my glass, letting Steven’s words flow over me without touching. This is exactly what always ends up happening.

Why should I have gone through with a wedding, knowing that I didn’t want to marry him? I could have perhaps said something rather than leaving the church like I did. But why should I have pretended that nothing was wrong? Why should I have swallowed my anger for his sake?

“That’s enough,” Aaron’s voice rings out.

I jump.

He stands up, glaring at Steven. “For someone who supposedly forgives her, you certainly have been ranting about what an awful person Bella is. You have issues. Leave her alone.”

Steven’s face goes beet red, like a tomato that just heard a really bad dad joke.

Aaron holds his hand out to me. I don’t care about people staring at us as I accept it.

He pulls me to my feet, and we quickly leave the café. I don’t look back to see Steven’s reaction.

“I think I’m going to be sick,” I moan. “Either from the awkwardness or that questionable pastry I had, it’s a toss-up!”

Aaron chuckles softly under his breath. “After that, I don’t blame you.”

I wince. Here he is, being such a gentleman, and all I can think about is myself.

“I’m so sorry for that scene,” I say apologetically. “I can’t imagine how embarrassing that was for you.”

Aaron’s eyes widen and he comes to a stop. “For me?”

“Well… yes,” I say, caught off guard. “Wasn’t it?”

He lets out a heavy breath and lifts his face toward the sky. “You didn’t do anything, Bella. That was all him. And he was embarrassing you. It had nothing to do with me.”

“But—” I cut myself off.

Steven would no doubt blame me for that scene he caused. He probably is blaming me right now to anyone who will listen.

I’m not the one that approached him. I didn’t even invite him to sit with us.

He did that all on his own.

I’m uncomfortable with trying to talk about it, so I pull my cell phone from my pocket. “I’m going to message Ellen. We should meet at the cabin instead.”

Aaron nods. “Yeah. Maybe we’ll see them along the way.”

We head toward the paths next to the lake. The cool breeze has turned into a stronger wind, the black clouds rolling in faster. I wrap my arms around myself, wishing I’d thought to bring a sweater just in case.

The waves on the lake are large and choppy. The few people out in canoes and kayaks are heading in toward the shore.

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